How to Cross the Colombia-Ecuador Border

In this article, I’ll explain how to travel by land from Colombia to Ecuador. This route is quite popular among local people and backpackers alike. To enter Ecuador from Colombia, I took a night bus from Cali, Colombia, and arrived in the border town of Ipiales in the morning. Before crossing the border, you might want to visit the Santuario de Las Lajas Church, which is the city’s landmark and impresses everyone with its appearance.

Santuario de Las Lajas is a stunning gray-and-white church located in a valley about 15 minutes outside of Ipiales. To get to the church, you just need to take a taxi from Ipiales, which costs around 15,000 Pesos. You’ll get out of the taxi at the top of the valley and walk down for about 10 minutes. After the walk, you’ll be greeted by the magnificent view of the Santuario de Las Lajas. After spending some time at the church and its surroundings, you can head to the border crossing.

The Colombia-Ecuador border crossing is about a 20-minute taxi ride from the church, costing around 18,000 Pesos. Once you reach the border, you need to get an exit stamp on your passport, which takes about an hour. After receiving the exit stamp from Colombia, you walk across the bridge to Ecuador. The stamp process on the Ecuador side takes around 30 minutes. You’ll need to fill out a form given to you and then get your passport stamped. It’s a smooth and easy crossing.

Travelers usually make their first stop in Ibarra after crossing the border. To get to Ibarra, take a minibus from right near the border crossing to the town of Tulcan ($0.75). These minibuses end at the Tulcan bus terminal. From there, you can easily find a bus to Ibarra. The ticket price is about $3, and the journey takes approximately 3 hours.

Along the way, you might encounter several police checks. There’s no need to panic; they are only checking passports and bags. If your bus is not a direct Ibarra bus, it won’t enter the Ibarra bus terminal but will drop you off at a point closer to the city center. You can then take a taxi for about $1.5 to get to the city center.